Silver Lake townhome project proposes public trail, viewing spot

EVERETT — The public could benefit from a new lakefront walking trail and other amenities as part of a 100-townhome development proposed on land across the street from Silver Lake.

Taylor Development’s Silver Lake Vue project would take shape along the Bothell-Everett Highway, northeast of the lake. A few years back, a denser high-rise project planned for the same property went bust.

The City Council is scheduled to consider the plans during its 6:30 p.m. Wednesday meeting.

“I think they want to get going this summer,” city planning director Allan Giffen said.

Representatives from the Bellevue-based developer last week did not return calls for comment.

The city Planning Commission earlier recommended approving the project. On Wednesday, council members are to consider two issues: a land-use plan and a permit to build near the shoreline.

The current proposal involves three-story townhomes spread throughout 12 acres.

Taylor Development has agreed to pay $69,000 for a lakefront trail that would run in tandem with the sidewalk until reaching Green Lantern Park, Giffen said.

A second public amenity would be a viewing area on the higher ground near the townhomes, where people could see the lake. A third would be allowing a public easement through the property so that pedestrians can walk a more direct path to the Safeway shopping center to the north, rather than skirting the highway.

“Those three things went above and beyond what we’d normally expect a developer to do,” Giffen said.

The Silver Lake Vue property was first cleared nearly a decade ago for an ambitious project that never materialized. Silver Lake Center, as it was then known, was permitted for 185 condos or apartments and 100,000 square feet of commercial space. Plans called for two 111-foot-tall buildings — on par with downtown Everett’s Wall Street Building.

In the Silver Lake community, worries ran high about how the plans would affect the neighborhood. The economic downturn shelved those plans.

Some of the land went into foreclosure and changed hands in 2010. Permits for the earlier project expired in 2012.

In early 2013, the Everett City Council placed emergency restrictions on developing the property. Those limits will be lifted if the new rules pass on Wednesday.

The latest proposal has prompted little in the way of public criticism. Over the past year, at least three community meetings in the Silver Lake area have focused on Taylor Development’s plans.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet.com.

Hearing on development

Everett City Council will hold a public hearing at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday to decide whether to approve plans for 100 townhouses across the street from Silver Lake. Location: City Council chambers, 3002 Wetmore Ave.